482 Visa Cost
482 Visa Cost
& Fees
A transparent breakdown of every cost category in a 482 Skills in Demand application — what the government charges, what the employer pays by law, what the applicant pays, and a realistic worked example so you can plan before committing.
Get a Written Fee Proposal — Free AssessmentWhat Does a 482 Visa Actually Cost?
The honest answer is: the 482 visa does not have a single cost — it has several separate cost categories paid by different parties at different stages of the process. Understanding the breakdown before you commit is important, because some costs are fixed by law (the SAF levy, the government application charges) and some vary by situation (skills assessment fees, agent fees).
Note on current government fee figures: government fees are updated annually, typically on 1 July, and the rates referenced on this page may have changed since last review. Always verify current government fees at homeaffairs.gov.au before relying on figures for financial planning.
Government Visa Application Charge (VAC)
The Department of Home Affairs charges a Visa Application Charge (VAC) to each applicant included in the 482 application. This covers the primary applicant and each secondary applicant (spouse/partner and dependent children) included at lodgement. The VAC is non-refundable — if the application is refused, the government fee is not returned.
VAC amounts are indexed annually and differ based on stream (Core Skills or Specialist Skills) and whether the applicant is primary or secondary. The current rates are published on homeaffairs.gov.au. Because these figures change, we do not publish specific VAC dollar amounts on this page — the risk of an outdated number is higher than the inconvenience of checking the source.
The Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) Levy — What It Is and Who Pays It
The Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy is a mandatory government charge that the sponsoring employer pays at the time of nomination lodgement. The levy cannot be waived, delayed, or avoided — it applies to every 482 nomination regardless of the employer's size or the applicant's circumstances.
The SAF levy is calculated as follows:
Small businesses (annual turnover below $10 million): $1,200 per year of visa validity requested
Large businesses (annual turnover $10 million or above): $1,800 per year of visa validity requested
For a 4-year Core Skills stream grant: $4,800 (small business sponsor) or $7,200 (large business sponsor)
These rates apply at the time of nomination lodgement. The SAF levy may be subject to indexation — verify current rates at homeaffairs.gov.au before planning.
Employer Costs vs Candidate Costs
Australian immigration law draws a clear line between costs the employer must pay and costs the candidate can be asked to pay. Knowing this boundary protects you from illegal cost-shifting and helps you understand what to expect when you receive a cost breakdown.
Costs the Employer Must Pay
The following costs are the employer's legal responsibility and cannot be passed on to the visa applicant in any form:
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS) application fee — paid when the employer applies to become an approved sponsor
Nomination application fee — paid when the employer lodges the nomination for your specific role
Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy — as detailed above
Any placement fee paid to RedBridge for the candidate matching service
Costs the Candidate Pays
The following costs can lawfully be paid by the visa applicant:
Government Visa Application Charge (VAC) — the individual visa application fee for each applicant included
Skills assessment fee — if your occupation requires a formal skills assessment, this is typically the applicant's cost
English language test fee — the cost of sitting IELTS, PTE Academic, OET, or another accepted test
Migration agent fees — for the advice, case preparation, and lodgement services provided to you by Insight Idea
The line is not always followed. If an employer asks you to contribute to the SAF levy, the SBS fee, or the nomination fee — directly or indirectly — that is a breach of the Migration Act. The Department of Home Affairs has a complaint mechanism for exactly this situation.
Migration Consulting and Legal Fees
Migration agent fees cover the professional services involved in preparing and lodging your application — eligibility assessment, document review, skills assessment preparation, nomination review, and visa application management.
Fee structures vary across providers. Common approaches include: flat fee per stage; hourly billing; or milestone-based fees tied to application events. There is no regulated price for migration services in Australia.
How RedBridge's Fees Work
RedBridge's service fees are structured across milestones — you pay as outcomes are delivered, not as a single large sum before work begins. The typical fee milestones align with: signing your Client Agreement, the employer introduction (you meet the employer and confirm satisfaction), visa lodgement, and visa grant.
A written fee proposal covering RedBridge's service fees and Insight Idea's migration agent fees is provided at your free consultation, before any engagement is confirmed. No payment is requested before you have reviewed and signed your Client Agreement. Government fees (VAC, skills assessment, English test) are disclosed separately and are paid directly to the relevant bodies — they do not pass through RedBridge.
Hidden or Easy-to-Miss Costs
Beyond the headline government fees and agent fees, there are several costs that are commonly overlooked in cost planning for a 482 application.
Skills Assessment Fees
If your occupation requires a formal skills assessment, the assessing body charges a fee for the assessment. Fees vary by body and assessment type. As representative examples at the time of writing: ACS skills assessments are approximately AUD $530–$590 for a standard assessment; VETASSESS professional occupation assessments are approximately AUD $750–$900; Engineers Australia assessments range from approximately AUD $800–$1,200 depending on the pathway. These are indicative figures — check each body's current fee schedule on their website before planning.
English Language Test Fees
If you need to sit an English test (or resit because your results have expired), the test fee is an out-of-pocket cost. Approximate fees at major testing providers as of mid-2026: IELTS Academic or General Training, approximately AUD $395–$430; PTE Academic, approximately AUD $330–$360; OET, approximately AUD $600–$650 for the full test. Test fees vary by location and booking date — check the provider's website for current pricing.
Total Cost — A Realistic Example
To illustrate how these cost categories add up, here is a worked example for a common scenario: a Core Skills stream application for a mid-level ICT professional, sponsored by a large business (>$10M turnover), seeking a 4-year visa, requiring an ACS skills assessment.
Employer costs: SAF levy ($7,200 for a 4-year grant from a large business) + SBS application fee + nomination application fee + RedBridge placement fee. The SAF levy alone is $7,200 — this is the largest single line item in most 482 applications, and it is entirely the employer's cost. The SBS and nomination fees are published on homeaffairs.gov.au; verify current rates.
Candidate costs: Government VAC (primary applicant) + ACS skills assessment (~$530–$590) + IELTS or PTE test (~$330–$430) + Insight Idea migration agent fee. The specific VAC and agent fee vary by application — these are disclosed in writing at the free consultation.
Total costs across both parties in a scenario like this can range broadly depending on VAC rates, agent fees, and whether secondary applicants are included. The split matters more than the total: the largest items are the employer's by law. The candidate's out-of-pocket government costs are the VAC and test fees; the rest is professional services.
If cost planning is a key factor in your decision to proceed, raise it explicitly at your free RedBridge consultation. We walk through the full cost breakdown for your specific scenario — sponsor size, visa length, occupation, secondary applicants — before any fees are confirmed.
Questions About Cost? Talk to Us.
The free eligibility assessment at RedBridge is not a sales call — it is a working session. Your consultant will confirm your eligibility, map out the pathway, and provide a written fee proposal for your specific situation. If the costs do not make sense for your circumstances, we will tell you that too.
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